Knock, Knock
by xXxJaceInWonderlandxXx
Summary: "Three long, deliberate knocks, followed by two short ones, and then one more long bang on the door that echoes around the empty room. That sound hadn't rang throughout the apartment for almost a year." Three times when Percy and Annabeth come to Sally's front door, and the lessons they learn from each visit. Percabeth and mother/child relationships, for Something More Creative.


**So long story short, the immensely talented Something More Creative asked lil' old me for a oneshot featuring Percabeth and Sally together. It took me way too long, but I'm finally done and hope you enjoy! **

**Song: The Best Day by Taylor Swift**

**Disclaimer: I only own the idea. Everything else belongs to Rick.**

**Enjoy!**

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**Knock, Knock- Percabeth/Sally for SMC**

There was a knock on the front door.

Sally Jackson stops washing dishes, turns off the sink, and wipes her hands on the dirty towel hung carelessly over the oven, scarcely daring to breathe. Three long, deliberate knocks, followed by two short ones, and then one more long bang on the door that echoes around the empty room. That sound hadn't rang throughout the apartment for almost a year.

It was Percy's knock, the special one from when he was young and she and Gabe had just finished fighting. Her now ex-husband would storm around in the kitchen, drinking and swearing, and Sally would go into her room and sit there, head in her hands. That's when Percy would repeat that same pattern that sounds outside at this very second- his childish way of comforting her. Of saying that he was there and he would always be.

Sally longs for those simple days.

Before her son went missing. Before he fell into the depths of Tartarus. Before the Gods decided to screw with her life yet again. It makes Sally's heart constrict at the mere thought. Why couldn't her son have a normal life like the rest of the world? Why was he supposed to be the hero in every story? Percy Jackson deserved to have a happy ending more than anyone, and honestly, Sally was tired of waiting for that day to come. She wants him to be a little boy again, safe and in his mother's arms. Was that too much to ask?

The knock rang through the apartment twice more, the same repetitive pattern boring into Sally's mind, but she can't will herself to move. It's only when a girl's voice sounds from outside in the hallway, familiar and weary, that she finally shakes herself out of her stupor.

"Maybe she isn't home, Percy. We'll try again tomorrow."

_Percy? _Sally's mind screams, as she begins moving towards the door at a near impossible speed. _As in, my son, Perseus Jackson? _She flings open the heavy wooden door, gaping at the boy who stands on the other side, one hand poised to knock on the door and the other one crammed into his sweatshirt pocket.

The young man on the other side is not the little boy that she last saw, by any standards. This Percy is impossibly tall, head almost touching the top of the doorframe, with what used to be little pockets of baby fat now lean muscle. His eyes are sunken, as if they've seen horrors worse than she can even imagine, and he's pale, too, black hair in stark contrast to his skin. There's blood crusted on his forehead, and he's definitely favouring his left leg.

Sally picks up on all of this immediately- it's mother's intuition, after all. However, every cut, every grimace or bandage fades away as her son grins at her, eyes beginning to sparkle just a little, and says the two words she's been dreaming about hearing since that horrible day last winter. "Hi, Mom."

"Percy," She gasps, running towards him, and suddenly she's sobbing and he's sobbing and hugging her like he hadn't done since he was very little. It's only then that Sally notices the girl standing to the left of her son, ankle bandaged heavily and a sad smile on her face.

"Hi, Mrs. Jackson," Annabeth waves, leaning back on her crutches and staring wistfully at the two of them.

Sally lets go of Percy, allowing him to step back as she goes and crushes her son's girlfriend- even though by this point, she's so much more- in the same kind of hug she gave her own child, being a little more careful due to the younger girl's obvious injury. Annabeth sags into her, sobbing openly, and Sally realizes that it's not only her who's shocked at seeing her son still alive and standing at the door. Annabeth's crying tears of happiness just like her, as they both wept all those days ago for Percy's disappearance. "I told you, dear, call me Sally," She manages to choke out, before sweeping her hand shakily towards the inside of the apartment. "Come in, both of you. We're frightening the neighbours."

The couple of people who have peered out of their apartments to look at the trio suddenly slink back, embarrassed, but neither Percy nor Annabeth seem to notice as they make their way inside to the living room, hands tightly interlocked, despite their injuries. The two settle on the sofa, Annabeth's head resting on Percy's shoulder and his arm tight around her, and Sally smiles at the two of them fondly before sitting down across from them. "Tell me everything," She demands, reverting to her normal mother-hen attitude. "Please."

They talk late into the night, about new friends and old ones and the Roman camp and the Athena Parthenos and especially Gaea- who Sally hates now even more than Kronos- before she notices that Percy's lower left arm is still shoved firmly into his sweatshirt pocket, thick and unmoving. Her brows furrow- the story about Annabeth's ankle and the various bandages adorning both of them has already been explained, but no one's mentioned a wrist in all of this.

"Percy," She says, gesturing to the lump in his sweatshirt, "What's that?"

At once, both teens' faces become completely closed off, as Percy and Annabeth exchange a brief glance. "Nothing, Mom," Percy says, although his voice cracks on the last word. "Just… just another battle wound."

"Percy…" Sally says, warningly, and her son sighs, exchanging another look with Annabeth before nodding. The girl in question blinks quickly- are those tears in her eyes?- and begins to speak, slowly and deliberately.

"Mrs. Jacks- um, Sally, we need to tell you something," Annabeth's voice is soft, a lone tear falling down her cheek as she exhales heavily. "So…in the final battle with Gaea, the camps were losing- badly. And…and… Percy and I decided it would be best to attempt to give her what she wanted, in order to end her, once and for all. We were inflicting little damages on her skin, but she would just use the dirt to heal herself before we could. Gaea needed the blood of two demigods- one male and one female- to come to life as a whole. So we figured… why… why…" Annabeth hiccups, looking distressed, and Percy tightens the arm around her shoulders protectively. "Why don't we allow her to rise fully, and therefore we can kill her completely?"

"I said it was too dangerous, so Annabeth snuck off," Percy continues, his voice low. "By the time I caught up, she had already added a couple droplets of blood to the mix"-he lifts up Annabeth's hair to reveal a thin line, obviously caused by a knife, along the side of her throat, and both teens shudder briefly- "but I stopped her before she could add anymore. They… they said that she had to give more blood or I could supply all of the rest myself, but it would take a massive amount…"

"Oh, Percy, you didn't!" Sally gasps, putting the pieces together in her mind as she stares at the two individuals opposite her, both of which are crying freely by this point. Percy lifts his left arm out of his pocket, revealing the bandaged stump where his hand used to be, and his mother reels back in shock.

"I couldn't let them hurt Annabeth," He says, voice strong. "It's my fatal flaw, Mom, but I can't stop it. I love her, and if one of us had to suffer, it's always going to be me. Every single time." Annabeth smiles through her tears, grasping the end of Percy's now handless wrist.

Sally stares at the young people before her, marvelling at how deep their love seemed to be. Everywhere she turned, there seemed to be more teens caught up in the idea of 'love', even though it was blatantly obvious that what they were feeling was merely lust. But her reckless and incredible son and this amazing, talented girl… they had found the perfection the rest of the world craves. They had been through hell and back for each other, had put themselves in danger just to save their counterparts, and found each other against all odds. This love was real; even Sally could sense it.

Maybe this was supposed to be the bright spot in her son's life. Maybe he had to be in danger at every moment, but, in return, he got unconditional love. At one point in Sally's life, that would have felt like the most unfair bargain in the world, but now, now... the looks on their faces, so filled with adoration and pure, undiluted love, made it all worth it, in her opinion.

-o-o-O-o-o-

There was a flurry of knocking on the door.

It wasn't the kind of knocking that sounded so many days during her son's teenage years- the kind that rang of panic and bad news and tears- but instead, the sound that was becoming more and more frequent now days, one jovial and light and bearing good news. That Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter had signed the peace treaty. That the Gods were in contact with their children yet again. That Frank and Hazel had adopted a child, or Leo had finally made it to Calypso's island, or Piper and Jason had gotten engaged. Sally was caught up in this demigod whirlwind of celebration and happiness, and, honestly, she was loving every second of it.

For every bad day, a good one's now replaced it, terrible memories never fading but instead being smothered underneath a blanket of all of the happy ones. And the knocks on her door are so much more frequent now, not only sounding in Percy's familiar pattern but in all different types, made by so many different demigods. If Sally had a nickel for every time a new child showed up at her door, needing help or advice or just a blue chocolate cookies, she would have her entire salary from when she used to work at Sweet on America within a month. Not that she minded, of course. There wasn't a lot of children at Camp Half-Blood had a mother that was both mortal and still around, and Sally was happy to become the camp's communal mother. Still, as much as she loved all of those children, the very best surprise was always to find good news waiting in the form of her son and his wife.

So as she opens the door to find Percy and Annabeth standing there, hands interlocked just like the first time they stood on her doorstep together, Sally isn't surprised to see bright smiles on both faces. Annabeth's engagement ring sparkles right over her wedding band, making Sally flash back to the last few months, filled with plans and dresses and preparations. "What a surprise," She greets the two, ushering them inside. "Come on, tell an old lady her daily dose of demigod antics."

Percy smiles up at his mother, the stump at the end of his left wrist still shockingly obvious even after all this time. "Mom, you're not that old. And actually, we have an announcement to make first."

Sally raises an eyebrow, a bit confused to what's going on, but pleased with the promise of good news nonetheless. "Of course. Sit down, and I'll grab some cookies and be right out." She dashes off to the kitchen, a small smile lingering on her lips. There's a vague idea forming in her mind about what this so-called 'announcement' could be, but she'd rather hear it from them than try and guess. Sally walks back into the room slowly, watching the two young people as they straighten up from a hushed conversation and gaze fondly at one another.

Percy reaches towards the plate of cookies the second Sally sets them down, shoving three in his mouth simultaneously and earning a playful smack over the head from his wife. "So, um, Annabeth and I have been kind of busy lately…"

"Percy!" Annabeth blushes, looking down at her feet. "That's not the proper way to tell your mother about our, um, sexual life."

Sally smiles, deciding to take a wild guess about where this statement is going. "So let me guess, Annabeth, you're pregnant?"

Both young adults stare at her incredulously, taken aback by Sally's conclusion. "Er, yeah," Percy scratches the back of his neck. "She's two months along."

Sally squeals loudly, shocking both demigods even further as she wraps them up in a bone-crushing hug. "I'm going to be a grandma!" She says delightedly, before the full meaning of her words hit her. "I feel too young to be a grandma."

Percy, ever the momma's boy, is quick with his response. "You're still young, mom, don't worry. And we'll probably be coming over here a lot because even Wise Girl over here doesn't know everything about children and there's all sorts of pregnancy stuff that we need to figure out plus I don't even know how to change a diaper at all, so…" He bites his lip, cutting off his rambling.

"But you'll learn," Sally says soothingly towards her son, before turning to face his wife. "Annabeth, can I talk to you for a minute? Percy, you can go into your old room. Take the cookies."

Percy's face, although a bit confused, lights up at the mention of cookies, and he obliges, giving Annabeth a quick kiss on his way out of the living room. Sally smiles at the brief show of affection, before turning to face her daughter- the in-law part isn't really necessary anymore- and sighing. "So, on a scale of one to ten, how terrified are you?"

Annabeth breathes out shakily, laughing a little. "About a solid seven."

"Only seven?" Sally raises an eyebrow. "I was at least a eight and a half. However, that may be because I was forced to do it on my own, whereas you have a caring, supportive husband to guide you every step of the way."

"It's just…" Annabeth passes a hand over her eyes, looking exhausted. "We're demigods, saviors of Olympus- twice- and our lives are full of meeting with gods and battles with mythological creatures. We're not parent material by any standards! And even though I love Percy with all my heart, I really do, we're only twenty-three! I just don't feel like I'm ready."

Sally is suddenly struck with deja-vu, as she flashes back to a moment many years ago, in which she talked to her own best friend about how scared she was about having to raise a child on her own. There was no other time when the desire to have a mother again was any stronger. Her best friend had been supportive, but also clueless on most of those matters, and Sally was remembered of many days spent wishing for someone to guide her, someone to teach her how to set up a baby's room and how to prepare for the excruciating pain that is labour and how to deal with hormones and mood swings and morning sickness. Sally needed her own mother, and right now, Annabeth was in almost the exact same position as her. However, this time around, she was going to take the role of 'communal mother' to a whole new level. She was, in all purposes, Annabeth's mother, and had been for a very, very long time.

"Annabeth," Sally says softly, placing a hand on the younger girl's knee. "Do you know how old I was when I got pregnant with Percy?" She continues without waiting for a response. "I was nineteen, Annabeth. Nineteen and alone. I had no mother, no husband, nowhere to turn. My last family member had died, I didn't have a job, and I was living in this little shitty apartment on the other side of town. But you, you can have everything be alright. You have Percy. You have your father. You have all of camp, a house to live in, and I assume architecture pays very well. But you also have me. I may not be your birth mother, or your step mother, but I am so, so willing to be your mom. I'll help you and Percy with whatever you need. Having a kid is hard. I'm not going to let my kids raise my precious grandchild alone."

Annabeth stares at the older woman in shock, before engulfing her in a huge hug. "Thank you," She breathes, her voice bordering on sobbing. "Thank you, so, so much, Sally."

"Woah, lots of hugging!" Percy walks back into the room as Annabeth returns to sit beside him. "So, ladies, what did I miss?"

Sally smiles. "Well, for starters, Percy, you do realize pregnancy can be very messy, correct? You'll have to deal with your wife's mood swings, crazy cravings, and the ever-present morning sickness, if you haven't already started to."

Percy looks taken aback for a moment, before shrugging. "Well, it's all going to be worth it, right? I mean, in the end, there'll be a little baby we can call ours, and that's all that matters."

Sally stares at her son in shock, suddenly realizing what a capable young man he had grown into. He wasn't just a little boy anymore, asking his mom to sew up rips in his jeans or to help him with his homework or bake some more cookies. He was Percy Jackson, husband to Annabeth Jackson, and if anyone was capable of raising a child, it would be these three.

She was sure of it.

-o-o-O-o-o-

There was a series of knocks on the other side of the door, quick and childish, as a pattern quickly formed. It wasn't a new one by any means- in fact, it was the one from Percy's own childhood, but the people who were attempting to bust her door down were significantly more recent.

Sally quickly walks to the poor wooden door, a little battered from years of pounding, and quickly swings it open, revealing two cherubic faces gazing up at her, grubby fists ready to compose yet another melody on the hard surface. Their eyes, light green and sparkling, widen for a second, before they race past the old woman and into the apartment, straight to the kitchen, shouting a battle cry their father would surely be proud of.

"Cookies!" The little boy, just over four, toddles back into the living room with his hands full of blue-chocolate chips, his twin sister right behind him. It's only then the two children notice their grandmother's presence in the room, and rush to hug her, to Sally's utmost delight. She loved grandchildren- it was like having another little Percy around, except these two were twice as much work and less prone to monster attacks, thankfully.

"Dylan! Maria!" Annabeth appears at the door, panting from trying to catch up with the troublesome twins. Percy stands beside her, a baby carrier in one hand and an amused smile on his face as his wife begins to reprimand the two children for eating cookies before dinner.

Sally loves days like this, when they stop by for an unexpected visit and her normally quiet household, usually full of her writing and Paul grading, becomes a kind of familiar chaos that she craves. She glances towards the now empty baby carrier, grinning as she sees the little bundle that is her third grandchild, Ava, snuggled into her son's arms. "Oh, you brought her!"

"Mom," Percy laughed, holding the pink bundle out for Sally to take. "She's only a week old, and you've seen her every day since her birth. She's not going anywhere, don't worry."

Sally shrugs, leading them all into the kitchen, the baby still nestled in her arms. "Come on, come on. As your children have already noticed, we have cookies waiting."

Pretty soon they've all settled in, Dylan and Maria colouring in Percy's old room with the plate of cookies and Ava asleep in Annabeth's arms. Sally sits down on the couch, Percy and Annabeth across from her. They've assumed this same position so many times now that it's almost instinctive to them, so many memories and announcements floating around in Sally's mind as she reminisces about all that has happened in these very chairs.

Annabeth and Percy lean back onto their sofa with a sigh, Percy closing his eyes in relief. "Would you believe this is the first time we've sat down in over seventy-two hours?" Annabeth rubs her temples, careful not to jostle the sleeping baby in her lap. "I don't know why we had another kid; the twins are a handful all on their own."

"It's called parenthood," Sally says knowingly, taking a sip of tea. "And trust me, it doesn't end quickly. Did I tell you Percy refused to sleep through the night until he was almost five? And even then, he had this stuffed goldfish-"

"Mom!" Percy protests, blushing despite himself. "Come on! It's bad enough you embarrassed me when we were just dating, but Annabeth and I have been married for five years now! You have to be running out of stories sometime soon."

"Ah, but this is how I get revenge for all of the sleepless nights you put me through," Sally replies, to which Annabeth laughs. "And you will do the same to your kids when they're all grown up, as far off as that seems right now. But enough about the kids- how are you two?" Sally always asks this question, more out of necessity than anything else. Demigod life is hard, and she always wants her kids to be able to tell her anything, whether it be monster attacks or the outcome of the last capture the flag game.

Percy and Annabeth exchange a look- which makes Sally's heart plummet almost immediately. "Um, well, you heard about Chris and Clarisse, right?" Sally nods, wondering where this is going. The couple had been killed last month by a couple Laistrygonian Giants, and the whole camp had mourned their loss greatly. "Well, there have been more attacks," Annabeth continues, "No fatalities, but a lot of monsters near Manhattan. Chiron suspects it's because most of us decided to live here to be close to camp, and with the demigod population booming, it's not safe anymore."

Sally's mouth is dry, and she hopes her heart isn't beating as loud as she thinks it is. If this is going where she thinks it is…

"So, we've decided to move."

Yep. It went there. Sally blinks, trying to process this bunch of new information. It's trivial, really- she knows it's lucky that it isn't something worse, but at the same time… she's gotten so used to Percy and Annabeth living right down the road that the thought of them moving terrifies her to no end. "Where?" She manages to choke out, her tongue feeling like a lead weight and her tea not calming her nerves.

"Washington DC," Percy looks conflicted, as if knowing this is best for his family but not wanting to go anyways. "Annabeth got an architecture job there, and Jason's already climbing his way through the political pyramid and is promising to free up at job for me for protecting ocean diversity. It's not too far, though, so we'll still come back and visit, it's just… Mom? Are you okay?"

Sally doesn't try and hide the fact that there are tears streaming down her cheeks in thick rivulets, splashing onto her lap. She knows it's the right choice for them- after all, it's best that her son and his family move to a place that won't have such a high death risk- but still, she's his mother, and Sally just wants to be near to him all of her life, to watch him develop even further. "Fine," She sniffs, wiping her tears off of her cheeks. "It's just… I want you to be close to me! I want to see my grandchildren grow up, and I want to be able to provide whatever you and Annabeth need, and… and…"

"Sally," The woman is surprised to see her daughter's eyes glistening as well. "We're four hours away. And we get it, we really do. But Percy and I have talked a lot about this, and it's what's best."

Percy nods. "Mom, trust me. This is a hard decision to make, but it needs to be done."

Sally's still crying, but now, they're tears that hold so much more pride than sadness. When did the two of them stop being the two bickering teenagers that went from arguing to kissing in a minute and turn into these remarkable, responsible adults? They sit across with her, no longer gazing at her as if she was some otherworldly force far above them but merely an equal. It's shocking, in a way, but also fills her with a sense of happiness that she was able to help shape them into the loving individuals they are today. "How did you two manage to end up so amazing?" She smiles through watery eyes.

"Easy," Percy places a hand on his mom's knee. "We had you."

They move two months later, but Sally isn't sad.

In fact, it just makes her more excited to hear those little knocks on the door.

fin.

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**So... yeah. Hope it lived up to your expectations, SMC! **

**Also, yes, the part with Percy losing his hand is this headcannon I came up with late one night and just had to incorporate into this. I'm in love with the idea, so there may be more fics coming featuring that idea...**

**And with that, I make my glorious return back to the dark cave known as finals, not to emerge till February. Wish me luck!**

**Thanks for reading,**

**-Jace ;)**


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